No Arabic abstract
We present a unified understanding for experimentally observed minimal dc conductivity at the Dirac point in weak disordered graphene. First of all, based on the linear response theory, we unravel that randomness or disorder, inevitably inducing momentum dependent corrections in electron self-energy function, naturally yields a sample-dependent minimal conductivity. Taking the long-ranged Gaussian potential as an example, we demonstrate the momentum dependent self-energy function within the Born approximation, and further validate it via numerical simulation using large-scale Lanczos algorithm. The explicit dependence of self-energy on the intensity, concentration and range of potential is critically addressed. Therefore, our results provide a reasonable interpretation of the sample-dependent minimal conductivity observed in graphene samples.
We investigate the conductivity $sigma$ of graphene nanoribbons with zigzag edges as a function of Fermi energy $E_F$ in the presence of the impurities with different potential range. The dependence of $sigma(E_F)$ displays four different types of behavior, classified to different regimes of length scales decided by the impurity potential range and its density. Particularly, low density of long range impurities results in an extremely low conductance compared to the ballistic value, a linear dependence of $sigma(E_F)$ and a wide dip near the Dirac point, due to the special properties of long range potential and edge states. These behaviors agree well with the results from a recent experiment by Miao emph{et al.} (to appear in Science).
We study two lattice models, the honeycomb lattice (HCL) and a special square lattice (SQL), both reducing to the Dirac equation in the continuum limit. In the presence of disorder (gaussian potential disorder and random vector potential), we investigate the behaviour of the density of states (DOS) numerically and analytically. While an upper bound can be derived for the DOS on the SQL at the Dirac point, which is also confirmed by numerical calculations, no such upper limit exists for the HCL in the presence of random vector potential. A careful investigation of the lowest eigenvalues indeed indicate, that the DOS can possibly be divergent at the Dirac point on the HCL. In spite of sharing a common continuum limit, these lattice models exhibit different behaviour.
We study the conductance of disordered graphene superlattices with short-range structural correlations. The system consists of electron- and hole-doped graphenes of various thicknesses, which fluctuate randomly around their mean value. The effect of the randomness on the probability of transmission through the system of various sizes is studied. We show that in a disordered superlattice the quasiparticle that approaches the barrier interface almost perpendicularly transmits through the system. The conductivity of the finite-size system is computed and shown that the conductance vanishes when the sample size becomes very large, whereas for some specific structures the conductance tends to a nonzero value in the thermodynamics limit.
The dependent scattering effect (DSE), which arises from the wave nature of electromagnetic radiation, is a critical mechanism affecting the radiative properties of micro/nanoscale discrete disordered media (DDM). In the last a few decades, the approximate nature of radiative transfer equation (RTE) leads to a plethora of investigations of the DSE in various DDM, ranging from fluidized beds, photonic glass, colloidal suspensions and snow packs, etc. In this article, we give a general overview on the theoretical, numerical and experimental methods and progresses in the study of the DSE. We first present a summary of the multiple scattering theory of electromagnetic waves, including the analytic wave theory and Foldy-Lax equations, as well as its relationship with the RTE. Then we describe in detail the physical mechanisms that are critical to DSE and relevant theoretical considerations as well as numerical modeling methods. Experimental approaches to probe the radiative properties and relevant progresses in the experimental investigations of the DSE are also discussed. In addition, we give a brief review on the studies on the DSE and other relevant interference phenomena in mesoscopic physics and atomic physics, especially the coherent backscattering cone, Anderson localization, as well as the statistics and correlations in disordered media. We expect this review can provide profound and interdisciplinary insights to the understanding and manipulation of the DSE in disordered media for thermal engineering applications.
We study charge transport in one-dimensional graphene superlattices created by applying layered periodic and disordered potentials. It is shown that the transport and spectral properties of such structures are strongly anisotropic. In the direction perpendicular to the layers, the eigenstates in a disordered sample are delocalized for all energies and provide a minimal non-zero conductivity, which cannot be destroyed by disorder, no matter how strong this is. However, along with extended states, there exist discrete sets of angles and energies with exponentially localized eigenfunctions (disorder-induced resonances). It is shown that, depending on the type of the unperturbed system, the disorder could either suppress or enhance the transmission. Most remarkable properties of the transmission have been found in graphene systems built of alternating p-n and n-p junctions. This transmission has anomalously narrow angular spectrum and, surprisingly, in some range of directions it is practically independent of the amplitude of fluctuations of the potential. Owing to these features, such samples could be used as building blocks in tunable electronic circuits. To better understand the physical implications of the results presented here, most of our results have been contrasted with those for analogous wave systems. Along with similarities, a number of quite surprising differences have been found.